Check Out Kyle Donnelly’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kyle Donnelly.

Hi Kyle, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
The story of how I started goes back about 5 or 6 years ago, in college. I picked up woodburning as a stress-relieving hobby and started creating different nature scenes, superheroes, etc. For a few years, I did different small commission pieces for friends and made many gifts for birthdays or Christmas. My most proud creation was a table made for my fraternity, TRI-Atelier. Yes, it’s not the traditional Greek fraternity, but we were all joined in construction majors (Construction Management, Architecture, Carpentry, Masonry, etc.) at SUNY Delhi in New York state.

After graduation, I decided I wanted another hobby to continue to help with stress relief and keep me busy. I purchased my first wood lathe as a Christmas present to myself. I taught myself how to use the lathe by watching Youtube videos and Reddit threads. I started making small wood bowls (these bowls now scatter my house everywhere) and pens at first and once again gave them out for gifts and sold a few to help pay for more materials and tools. Everything changed when I took a new job and moved to Bozeman, MT. I packed up what would fit into a 10-foot Uhaul and hit the road. This is where the stress relief was really needed. At my new job, I worked long days into the weekends and expected to move across the country quickly. It was a stressful time, but it was tremendously valuable to me as it taught me a lot and helped me develop skills that would help me to create my own business (Time management, organization, communication, negotiation, etc.).

Fast forward 2 years to Feb 2020. After a long back and forth in my head, I decided to expand my hobbies and dive into leatherworking. I purchased a couple of bags of scraps and some thread and started creating them. I started by making small pouches and coasters and finally moved on to making my first bag. Everything I made, I made for utility for myself. I made a shoulder bag for work, a duffle for travel, and all sorts of other things for myself to use.

This was the point that Bearded Craftsman Goods was born. I knew I needed a logo, so I went on to design one. Of course, a beard was the center, as they would know me by this. (I have had a beard for quite some time, known as Paul Bunyan in my fraternity because of flannels and beard, haha) A beard, crossing needles, and surrounded by a stitch. It was perfect, with my name across the top and my slogan, “Started From Stubble,” as every beard has to start somewhere. I ordered a custom stamp to brand all of my work and, of course, ordered it from a small business.

At this point, my business was starting to get some traction but was still mostly an idea. I wanted to get the business up and going, but work was getting in the way. After moving to Bozeman, I went to Sacramento, CA, back to Bozeman, MT, and now getting sent to Clarksville, TN. At this project in TN, I only had the time to work on anything one day a week. It killed me not to be able to make something every night. I used every minute of spare time I had to work and create new things. I would work hard on the project all week and again on the weekends to create new stuff for my business.

I was working so hard that I felt like I was slowly killing myself—the stress of the long hours and so much to do every day. I didn’t know what to do with myself. After exactly one year in TN, I got a new job and came to Raleigh, NC. By securing a new job with less stress and hours, I could finally get to work more on creating a business of my own.

In my newfound home of Raleigh, I quickly moved to get my business up and to run. I filed for an LLC in North Carolina and started getting to work creating. Soon after starting my business officially, I found out how welcoming the Raleigh small business community is. Through work, I met Nick and Lindsey, owners of The Brew Box, who worked hard to supply everyone on site with their daily caffeine kick. I found Triangle Pop Up and their shop Curate through a couple of Nick’s tips.

I quickly applied to be a vendor with Triangle Pop Up as I wanted to get my face out there and sell some of my leather goods. Soon after using it, I dropped off inventory at their store, Curate, to have a few items sold during the holiday season. In addition to Curate, I did my first-ever market at Fenton in Cary, NC, just after Thanksgiving. I was amazed at the outburst of support from customers at the market and other small businesses that wanted to help and make sure everything was a success for all. It was certainly a success, and it showed. I ran out of business cards at the fair for the first time. I only had one left when I was all done and started packing up!

After my first market’s success, I was invited to go out to another market, this time in Durham, during the Holiday Parade. I was astounded that someone would reach out to me to sell at their market. I went to the market and stood in the cold for 9 hours selling my leather goods. This time I even sold out of something! I enjoyed watching the faces of people buying something for themselves and stepping aside to admire my work. It goes to show the amazing support of the small business community.

I started making things to deal with stress in my life. I started making things because I needed an outlet to keep me sane. I now create things because I love the light on someone’s face when they fall in love with the beauty of the leather. I made it to know how much someone will cherish a handmade hand-stitched leather wallet that will last a lifetime. Now that I have more time, I can finally work to create instead of the vent.

I am still very new to the business, but things have been moving nicely. With the help of a few and the determination to create and inspire through my work, I will do just fine in the coming months/years. I don’t intend to stop anytime soon. My mind will never cease to create.

Would it have been a smooth road, and what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has been amazingly smooth as a new small business owner in Raleigh. It would have been a lot harder if not for the wonderful small business community in Raleigh and my amazing wife’s help and support. I have been with my wife for 6 years, married for 1.5 of them, and she has been the love and support that has kept me going. She helps me creatively by helping me decide on patterns and leather and gives me criticism when needed. With all the support at my side, any struggles have gone unnoticed.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For readers who might need to become more familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
As a professional, I am a construction schedule consultant. I have been working in the construction industry for 10 years. As Bearded Craftsman Goods, I work mostly with leather. I am not known much now since I am so new as a business. I do have a small line of wallets that I have called the Bearded wallet collection. It starts with the first wallet design that I ever made. I call this “The Stubble” cause every beard starts with stubble, right? The next few are other beards, “The Goatee,” “The Van Dyke” and “The Chops.” The thing I am most proud of is probably the first bag I ever made. I still use it to this day. At 2.5 years old, it is still in amazing condition, and I will be able to continue using it for a lifetime. Everything comes out differently every time, and it’s wonderful. A thing that sets me apart from others is that I sometimes tie-dye my leather. I use a process with shaving cream and alcohol dye to create wonderful and unique leather pieces. I use this to make coasters, keychains, and wallets. I have yet to make a whole tie-dye bag, but that is definitely on the to-do list for one day.

Another thing that sets me apart from others is that there is a lot of machine-stitched stuff and stuff made with only semi-real leather. Everything I make is made of 100% real full-grain leather. Many products are made with pleather or leather veneers with other layers of stuff. I hand cut and saddle stitch every single thing I make. For those who don’t know, a saddle stitch uses two needles, one in each hand, and stitching both ways. If a machine stitch comes undone, the whole thing unravels. If one of the saddle stitches comes undone, it will stay together and can be fixed much easier.

Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting?
There are tons of resources to learn how to make stuff or get your business started. Be bold, ask questions on forums, and message people directly to ask stuff. You’d be surprised at how much of a response you’ll get from other like-minded small business owners out there.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://beardedcraftsmangoods.myshopify.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beardedcraftsmangoods